You're Never Far Away
by EveryMileAMemory
Summary: Summary inside! Zashley
1. Chapter 1

Summary..

The gang is filming High School Musical 2, and joining the cast are a few new people. One of the new cast members, Justin, has a thing for Ashley. Zac suddenly feels very jealous, and starts to dislike Justin as time goes on. Will Ashley feel a connection with Justin, or will her strong friendship with Zac pull through? eventually Zashley!


	2. Let Us Begin!

**Chapter one**

Ashley's POV

We were all sitting on the set of High School Musical 2. Kenny told us that today we were going to have a surprise. No one had any idea what the surprise could be, so we all just waited around anxiously. I really didn't mind just sitting around and finally having a break because we had been dancing all day and my feet were getting very sore. I suddenly felt a slight tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see a smiling Zac staring at me although he looked a bit nervous.

"Hey Zac!"

"Hey, Ashley, I was wondering if maybe.." but he was cut off by a very excited looking Kenny walking rapidly toward us.

"Would everyone follow me please!" Kenny exclaimed.

"Zac, could we talk later?" I asked him.

"Yeah, of course." he replied looking a little disappointed.

We followed Kenny into a very big room. There was a rather large table in the middle with many chairs along with it. He told us to sit down and make ourselves comfortable, and he would be back in a few minutes. I sat in between Vanessa and Lucas, and across from Monique, Corbin, and Zac. We all just talked for a few minutes until Kenny finally came back.

"I would like to introduce you all to three new cast members!" Kenny exclaimed.

Two girls and one boy walked into the room. They looked a little nervous, and yet excited to be here. I couldn't help but notice the new guy. He was extremely cute with his handsome brown hair and chocolate brown eyes. He was pretty tall and had great style, and I could have sworn I saw him give me a quick smile.

Zac's POV

I was a little disappointed in the "surprise" we got. I mean, I am happy to see some new cast members, but i thought we might be getting something new, such as, a sports car or a free day from rehearsals. Oh well, this is cool too I guess. The three new members looked like your normal, everyday people. As I watched them all say hello to us all, I saw something that made me sick to my stomach. The new boy, I didn't even know his name, but I saw him staring at Ashley and smiling. I feel like just screaming at him to tell him to back off because I like Ashley. Yes, I said it. I like Ashley Tisdale. In fact, I might even love her.

No One's POV

A very tall girl with blonde hair and blue eyes stood up in front of the table getting ready to introduce herself.

"Hey everyone! My name is Alyson, but people call me Aly." the young girl said excitedly. She seemed very perky, and a little annoying.

Next to introduce theirself was another young girl with brown, curly hair and brown eyes.

"Hello, my name is Katie. I just moved here from North Carolina and am very excited to be here with all of you." she exclaimed.

Last, there was the boy with brown hair and chocolate brown eyes.

"Hello everyone. My name is Justin. I think this is going to be a great experience and I am very excited to start working with you all and getting to know each one of you peronally." he said looking directly at Ashley while he said the last part.

Zac, of course, had been watching him like a hawk. He noticed Justin's gaze was on Ashley as he spoke which made Zac not so happy. Zac could see Ashley blushing slightly, this made him more angry.

"Alright everyone, I'm glad you all met and I hope you will soon get to know each other very well. Now, five minutes, and back to work!" Kenny said. Everyone groaned.

As the cast was walking out of the room, Kenny pulled them over and told them that they would be guiding the three new cast members.

"Vanessa and Corbin, you will guide Aly. Monique and Lucas, you will guide Katie. Ashley and Zac, you will be Justin's guide. Now all I want you to do is help them get comfortable around the set and with all of the people here. Take them places and get to know them. If they have any questions then be there to answer them. Does everybody understand?" Kenny explained.

Everybody nodded 'yes' and walked out of the room to look for whoever they were guiding. Zac and Ashley turned to see Justin sitting on a chair reading a book. They walked up to him and properly introduced themselves.

_'This is going to be fun.' _Zac thought to himself.

**Well, there you go. Now, this is my very first fanfiction, so don't be too harsh when it comes to reviews, but please review! I'm not sure if this story is a very good idea, so I need all of your support! I can take rejection though! Thanks everyone!**


	3. Zac, Out of My Way

**Chapter 2**

Zac's POV

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock ringing on my bedside table of the hotel room. Today was Saturday, the weekend, so we had the day off. Ashley and I decided to take Justin around the set and out to lunch so we could get to know him. I quickly got up, showered, and then headed down to the lobby. The three of us decided to meet in the lobby before we headed off to the set. I was a little early and expected to be the only one in the lobby, but to my surprise, Justin was sitting on a couch by a fireplace.

"Hey Zac." he said.

"Hey." I replied, not very happy to be seeing him.

We sat there in silence waiting for Ashley to come down. Like always, it took her a long time to get ready. I think we waited about fifteen minutes before I finally saw her walking towards us. As I saw her a small smile crept onto my face. She looked beautiful. Ashley had on a baby blue T-shirt with some jeans and a pair of brown boots.

"Hey guys!" she said happily.

"Hey Ash." I replied giving her a hug which she returned.

"Hey Ashley." Justin said from the couch.

"So, are we ready to go?" Ash asked.

We nodded and headed out the lobby doors. I walked beside Ashley and Justin was a little in front of us. Ashley told me we could talk about whatever we were going to talk about because we didn't get a chance to yesterday. I told her it could wait. Yesterday I was going to ask her out, but I couldn't do that now, not with Justin right there. The three of us got into a taxi and drove down to the set. The ride was alright. We talked about what we liked to do and told a little about each of us. Finally, we arrived at the set. No one was there except for a few of the clean-up crew members. We walked into the recording studio.

"Alright Justin, this is the recording studio where we record all of our songs. I think we have one more week of dance rehearsals and then we start recording our music." Ashley exclaimed.

"Well, I can't wait to hear your new songs Ashley. You have an amazing voice." Justin said. I could tell he was flirting.

"Oh, well, thank you." Ashley smiled.

"Okay, how about we head off to the gym where we rehearse." I said anxiously.

As we walked to the gym, Justin kept talking to Ashley about random things. I hear her laughing every now and then. So far this day has started out not so good.

After about an hour of exploring the set, we decided to go out for lunch. Once again, we got into the taxi and headed off to get some food. Once we got to the resturant, I sat by Ashley immediatly. Justin sat across from us. We talked for awhile about filming and other random things, but then I had an idea. I decided to flirt with Ashley and see what Justin would do. Ashley even flirted back with me. We would just laugh and smile, and every now and then we would talk to Justin. He gave me a look of envy, but I just acted like I didn't see it.

Justin's POV

Zac is getting in my way. I want to have a chance with Ashley, but with Zac in the way, it doesn't look like that's going to happen. I have to get some alone time with Ashley, and fast. Ashley seems to really like Zac and Zac seem to really like Ashley, and that's not working for me. Tonight I'll make my move.

**Thank you sooo much for all of the reviews! It means so much to me. If anyone has any ideas feel free to shout them out there. Thanks once again guys, your reviews truely made my day. I'm not sure when I'll get another chapter up. I go back to school on Tuesday, which I'm not looking forward too...but anyways, it all depends on the homework situation. I might get a chapter up tomorrow. Hopefully..HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!**


	4. Zac is there once again!

**Thank you to all of my reviewers! you guys are awesome!**

**Everyone, give credit to Chel08...because thats where I got the idea for this chapter! Thanks a lot Chel08...i thought your idea was awesome! I added my own ideas too.**

**Chapter 3**

No POV

The three cast members got back to the hotel about an hour later.

"I think I'm going to go freshen up guys. I'll talk to you later." Ashley said.

Justin and Zac said bye, and then went opposite directions to get to their hotel rooms. About a half an hour later, Justin knocked on Ashley's door.

"Hey!" Ashley said.

"Hey. I was wondering if you could help me with my lines, just to make sure im getting them right. I don't want to look like a fool in front of everyone." Justin explained.

"Oh sure. Let me just get my script."

Five minutes later Ashley and Justin were walking down the hall of the hotel. They decided to just practice in the lobby on a bench in the corner.

"Okay, what scene do you need help with?" Ashley asked.

Justin told her what he needed 'practice' with. He actually only asked Ashley for help so he could have some alone time with her. This was the only way he could be alone with her without Zac getting in his way. After a little while, Jusin had enough of practicing. This was the perfect chance to try and charm Ashley.

"You know, how about we take a quick break. I can buy you a drink and we can talk a little." he said.

"Okay, that sounds like a good idea. I could sure use a break."

They went to get a drink in the hotel's Starbuck's. They found a little table in the back and sat down at it.

"So, Justin, are you enjoying being here with everybody? I mean, we are all excited to have new cast members. Ashley asked.

"Oh, trust me, this is a great experience. Everyone has been so welcoming and I feel like I really belong."

"That's good. I'm glad." Ashley replied.

They started talking nonstop. Actually, Justin was the one doing most of the talking. Ashley just kind of sat there and nodded her head every now and then. He could tell she was getting bored, so he decided to pop out some jokes. This got Ashley laughing and into the conversation a little bit more. But when Zac was walking through the hotel and saw Ashley and Justin laughing and talking all alone, he had a feeling something was up. Zac did the only thing he could think of. He walked into the shop where Ashley and Justin were having their drinks.

"Hey guys!" Zac exclaimed, trying to act surprised. Justin just gave him a look of disgust, but then quickly put on a fake smile.

"Hey Zac! Why don't you join us." Ashley said.

"Well, if you insist."

"So, Zac, what brings you down here?" Justin asked sounding a little annoyed.

"Well, I was just asking Kenny about something in the script. Then I was about to go up to my room, but I got thirsty. I decided to get a drink, and thats when I saw you guys." Zac explained. He lied on that last half, but they didn't need to know that.

The three of them talked for a while. Justin and Zac basically had a contest to see who could flirt with Ashley more, although she was completely oblivious to it. The Monique and Lucas came walking toward them.

"Hey you guys! Corbin is throwing a little party tonight at 7. Want to come?" Lucas asked.

Zac, Ashley, and Justin all nodded in agreement.

"Ashley, Vanessa and I were wondering if you wanted to go up my room and get ready for Corbin's party. We're going to pick out our outfits and do our make-up and hair." Monique exclaimed.

"Yeah sure! That sounds like fun! Excuse me Zac and Justin. I'm going to go get ready." Ashley explained.

Zac gave Ashley a quick hug which made Justin a little angry, but he shook it off.

"See you Ash!" Justin said before Ashley was out the door.

"Bye!"

**Okay that's chapter 3...tell me what you think..good? bad? If you guys don't really like it than tell me because i need to know if you want me to continue with this story. Please review! **


	5. It's Party Time!

**Hey everyone..thanks for all of your reviews ... i would have had this chapter up yesterday, but I left the notebook i wrote it in at school..anyways..thanks once again!**

**Chapter 4**

No POV

Ashley and Monique their way to the fourth floor, where Vanessa's room was. They knocked on the door, and a few seconds later, Vanessa opened the door.

"Hey guys!"

"Hey!" they exclaimed.

"Follow me." Vanessa told them.

She led them into her closet that was filled with more clothes that anyone could ever imagine. It was like girl heaven. Vanessa told them to pick out whatever outfit they wanted, and once they were done doing that, they would work on hair and make-up. Monique picked out a beautiful short pink dress that looked stunning on her. Ashley chose a jean skirt that was a little above her knees with leggings to go with it. She had on a red tank top with a jean jacket over it. Vanessa chose a pair of jeans and a black blouse to go with it. They all put on their new outfits and they looked beautiful!

"Alright guys, we all look awesome! Now we just need the hair and make-up done and then we're ready to go." Vanessa said.

They headed over to the counter in Vanessa's bathroom and started on their makeup. It took them probably about a half an hour to get everyone's done. Next, they worked on their hair. They all decided to wear their hair curly. After that, Monique, Ashley, and Vanessa sat down on the couch and talked before leaving to go to Corbin's room.

"So, Ashley, what were you up to today? I saw you hanging out with Zac and Justin." Monique said.

"Oh yeah. Well, Justin asked me if I could help him with some of his lines and then Zac showed up, so I asked him if he wanted to hang out."

"Oh okay. So there's nothing going on between any of you?" Vanessa asked with a smirk.

"What. No, of course not!"

"Mmhmm." Monique and Vanessa both said.

'Where did they even get an idea like that? Why would they think something is up between any of us? Although they are cute..wait, Ashley what are you thinking! Stop!' Ashley said inside her head.

After fifteen minutes of just talking, they decided to go down the hall to Corbin's room. They got to the door, knocked, and found a very excited looking Aly staring back at them.

"Hey guys! Everyone's here! Come on in!" she said very happily.

Ashley, Vanessa, and Monique walked into Corbin's room which looked very cool. There were disco lights everywhere and colorful lights blinking on and off. Streamers were hanging from the ceiling and there was a ton of food on the tables surrounding them. Music was blasting, nd it looked like everyone was having a good time. Katie, Corbin, Aly, and Lucas were all dancing. Zac was sitting on a chair just laughing at his crazy friends while Justin was standing by the food table eating pizza.

Everyone greeted them as they entered the room. Zac and Justin both looked at the beautiful Ashley and then at each other. They tried to get to her first so that they could ask her to dance. They were walking as fast as they could, but not fast enough.

"Ashley, would you care to dance?" Lucas asked in a very gentleman kind of way holding out his hand for her to accept.

Ashley just laughed and nodded her head taking Lucas's hand. Zac and Justin looked very disappointed and threw dirty glances at each other. They went their seperate ways in the room, but still watched Ashley very closely waiting for her to stop dancing with Lucas. Justin got up to use the bathroom a little while later. Luckily for Zac, Ashley just finished dancing with Lucas and went to go get a drink.

"Hey Ash! You look great tonight." Zac said while giving her a tight hug.

"Aww thanks Zac! You don't look bad yourself!" Ashley replied while returning the hug.

Just then, a slow song came on. Zac pulled Ashley lightly over to where everyone was dancing and put his arms around her waiste holding her close, while she placed her hands around his neck. Zac was so into the moment, that he didn't notice Justin who had just exited the bathroom. He was looking straight at the two. He saw how close Zac pulled Ashley towards him. They looked like they were deep in conversation, and definately enjoying the dance with each other.

After awhile, the song was finally over. Justin was relieved. He couldn't stand to watch one more minute of them talking and laughing. Vanessa, Monique, and Lucas decided to head back to their rooms. Justin decided to go to his room too, or so they thought. They all said their goodbyes and were off. Corbin, Zac, and Ashley just talked for about 15 minutes.

"What do you guys think about that Justin guy?" Zac asked curious to know what Ashley thought about him.

"Well, he seems pretty cool. I haven't really talked to him much." Corbin said.

"He's really nice once you get to know him. He's a pretty good actor too." Ashley said.

'At least she didn't seem that interested in him. That made me feel a little bit better.' Zac thought.

Little did they know, Justin was right outside Corbin's door, listening to their conversation. He wasn't very thrilled with Ashley's response. He thought she would at least say something a little more than what she had. He decided to go back to his room and think about a way to possibly make her like him and possibly a way to ask her out. The worst she could say is no. It's worth a shot.

Zac and Ashley said their goodbye and thank you's to Corbin, and then walked out the door.

"I'll see you later Zac!" Ashley said as she waved to him while walking down the hallway.

"Bye Ash!" Zac said with a smile, watching to make sure Ashley got to her room alright.

He then walked down the hall and into his room. He got into bed thinking about the wonderful night he had with Ashley, and drifted off into a deep sleep.

**Alright guys..that's chapter 4! I hope you enjoyed it. I'm not sure when I'll update because I have mid-terms coming up soon and its 20 of my grade. I gotta study..blah..anyways, just so you all know, there isn't any Lashley..that was just a friendly dance. There may have been some Zashley going on in there wink wink. I'll update when I can, but please review everyone! **


	6. Day off and UH OH

Thank you guys so much for all of the reviews!

**Chapter 5**

**No POV**

It was about six in the morning when Ashley's alarm clock went blasting off. She groaned. She was so tired from the night before, but then she thought about the great night she had with all of her friends. She smiled at the thought of Zac. They truely had an amazing night together. Ashley really thought that something was going to happen between them last night. As much as she doesn't want to admit it to everyone else, she loves Zac. She just shook off the thought since she knew Zac probably didn't feel the same way. Ashley got out of bed and showered up. She did her hair and make up and then decided to just watch television for a while. All of a sudden, her phone started blinking, indicating that she had a new text message. It was from Zac.

_'Hey Ash. Do you wanna go get some breakfast?' _it read.

She smiled and then replied saying she would go. She checked her hair and make up one last time, and then headed down to the lobby. Five minutes later, Zac came down from his room. He spotted Ashley on a couch and walked over to her giving her a hug.

"Hey Zac." Ashley said.

"Hey! So, where do you want to go for breakfast because I'm starving."

They finally decided to go to Perkins because it wasn't very far from their hotel. They ate for about fifteen minutes, and then they wanted to go somewhere else becaus they didn't feel like going back to the hotel anytime soon.

"So where do you want to go now? We can go to the mall or the movies maybe?" Ashley asked.

"How about we go to the park. It's nice and quiet and we could just relax." Zac replied.

"Well, okay. That sounds good.

Zac and Ashley walked to the park. It was only about ten minutes from Perkins. When they got there, there were a lot of people everywhere. They predicted this wasn't going to be a very peaceful day. As soon as one fan spotted them, many came up to them asking for autographs and pictures. It was very flattering, but they really wanted to just go somewhere by themselves. Soon, all of the fans scattered and went back to playing in the sandbox and swinging on the swings.

"Hey, look!" Zac said pointing at a dirt trail in the woods behind the swings.

"Where do you think it leads too?" Ashley asked sounds very interested.

"I don't know, but let's go find out." Zac replied while linking arms with Ashley.

This movement made Ashley melt. She was feeling all tingley inside and couldn't help but enjoy every second of this moment. Zac looked over at Ashley who had a smile across her beautiful face. He wasn't sure if she was feeling the same way as him at the moment. He felt weak at the knees and felt his face burn up. He probably looked like a tomato from blushing so much. Just feeling Ashley's touch made him feel good. After walking and talking for a good five minutes through the beautiful forest, they saw a small cottage.

"Zac, look at the little cottage! It's so cute! We have to go see it." Ashley exclaimed.

"Alright, but the cottage isn't as cute as me right?" Zac asked in a teasing way.

"Of course not Zac. You're gorgeous!" Ashley laughed.

Zac could tell Ashley was blushing a little when she said that which made a huge grin appear on his face. She then looked up at him and noticed him grinning at her ear to ear.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing. It's just, you look really pretty today." Zac said which made Ashley blush even more.

"Aww, Zac. You're so sweet." Ashley relied with a smile.

They just arrived at the cottage. They walked up to the door. It was a wooden door with a very rusty handle. After many attempts of opening the old door that was sticking, they finally got it open. It was a only a two room little cottage. One room with a little living room that had couches, chairs, and a fireplace. The other room was a bathroom.

"Wow! This place must be really old. It doesn't look like anyone has been here for years. Why don't we light the fireplace and just hang out here for a while. Since we don't have anything else to do, why don't we fix up the place. It could be like our own secret hidout. We can come here when we need to get away for a little while." Zac suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea."

So they worked on fixing up the old cottage all day. They had a lot of fun just goofing around with each other. Zac would hid and randomly jump out at Ashley every now and then which scared her like crazy, but Zac had fun. They had been cleaning up for a few hours, and Ashley was getting tired. She went to the couch and sat down for a while. Zac got up from the ground where he was cleaning up the cob webs and dust, and noticed Ashley on the couch. He smiled and walked over to sit by her.

"Taking a break huh?" Zac asked.

"Yeah. I'm getting kind of tired. Do you think we should get something to eat soon? My stomach keeps growling."

"Yeah, definately. I'm really hungry. Let me just finish up cleaning out the cob webs by the fireplace, and then we can start heading back." Zac said.

Ashley just nodded, but before he could get up, Ashley leaned her head against his shoulder. Zac was a little shocked by this, but then leaned his head on hers. They both just sat there leaning on each other for a while. It was so quiet and peaceful. Neither Zac nor Ashley wanted to get out of this position, but eventually the did.

"Uh, come on. We should probably get going." Ashley said.

As much as Zac didn't want to, he gave in. The two of them got up and walked down the path they came. Before they knew it, they were walking through the park, past the swings and sandboxes, and eventually they were in front of the hotel. Zac and Ashley went to the elevator. It stopped on the fourth floor, which was Ashley's.

"Hey Zac, I had a great time today! It was so much fun. You are really a great friend." Ashley said with a smile.

"Well, I had a great time. Maybe tomorrow after rehearsal we could go back to the cottage."

"Yeah, that would be fun. Well, I'll see you later Zac, the elevators going to close."

"Oh right. See you bright and early tomorrow morning Ash!" Zac said as he pulled her into a tight hug. A few seconds later, they let go.

"Bye Zac!"

Ashley walked down the hall to her room, which happened to be the last room in the hallway. She realized she hadn't had anything to eat, so she decided she would call room service or something. As soon as she got to her door, she saw a note taped to it. Ashley pulled it off of the door trying not to rip it. It read:

_I am not very happy with you right now. You keep hanging out with..him, and I am going to make sure you don't anymore._

_If you do, I will know, and if you do, he will get hurt. Stay away from him and do not tell anyone about this note._

_If you do, there will be no more Zac._

_P.S. look down the hallway._

By this time, Ashley was scared. She slowly turned her head to look down the hallway, and was shocked at what she saw. In the shadows in a corner at the end of the hallway, stood Justin leaning against a wall. He had a smirk on his face that scared Ashley half to death. She quickly opened her door and locked it, trying to take in everything that had just happened. She took out her phone to call Zac, but after reading that note, she knew she couldn't do that. She couldn't tell anybody. Ashley was scared, and didn't know what to do.

**There's chapter 5...I hope you enoyed it! I'll update when I get the chance...Please review!**


End file.
